The most decorated Olympian of all time reflects on his winless run since coming out of retirement in April. Michael Phelps says his lacklustre performance at the US national championships served as a good learning experience. ‘I am doing it for myself, and I am going to have to work because I want to,’ he says.
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http://youtu.be/VBeanLwvi48
A shark sighting was confirmed in the water off Manhattan Beach pier on Thursday, about a month after a man swimming in the same area was left injured when a shark bit him. […]
A Baywatch Redondo personal watercraft investigated and confirmed the sighting to be a juvenile white shark that was 7 feet long, another Lifeguard Division tweet stated.
The shark was monitored for 45 minutes and determined not to be aggressive or a threat, so no advisories to the public were made, according to the division.
Such sightings are common, the division said.
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Smiley Hannah Miley has had a lot of success in her 25 years.
Her most recent was at last month’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow where she won a gold medal in the 400m individual medley and a bronze in the 200m individual medley.
But her achievements come at a price as she explained yesterday. Her medals, she said, make up for all the sacrifices her and her family have had to make – including not seeing her boyfriend for six months to train for last month’s sporting event.
Read more here on The Press and Journal
Photo courtesy of TVC Group
The Netherlands made it two: just as in the women’s 10km event, a Dutch triumphed in the men’s classic distance, Ferry Weertman won a magnificent race. The women’s 5km time trial brought the first gold medal for the hosts, Isabelle Harle won by a huge margin. In synchro, Russia is on the verge to collect the golds in duet and team.
After the evening rains, glorious sunshine welcomed back the competitors of the men’s 10km event in Grunau – and in the perfect conditions they produced a brilliant race on the regatta course again.
For three rounds Hungary’s Gergely Gyurta – little bro of the breaststroker ace Daniel – led the pack but during the last lap he started to fade while the ‘big guns’ began to rule. With 2km to go local hero Thomas Lurz switched speed, it was the 6th and for a while it seemed to be a winning tactic gear as the rivals, Frenchman Alex Meyer and Greece’s Spyridon Gianniotis fell behind. However, there was one man who could keep up with the German, Ferry Weertman of the Netherlands and when they reached the last turns, the Dutch was clearly fresher and stronger. He managed to pass Lurz and swum away in the last hundred metres, the Iron Man came second while Russia’s Evgeny Drattsev could leave the pack behind to clinch the bronze.
In the women’s 5km event the time trial format secured a calmer hour for the supporters, though the local enthusiasts created some noise when Isabelle Harle (GER) appeared first on the screen at the half-way check point. And she managed to keep her substantial lead till the end, she was the only one coming inside 58min and won by a huge, 34.2sec margin. The silver went to Sharon van Rouwendaal (NED), winner of the 10km on the opening day, while the bronze was clinched by Mireia Belmonte, the Spanish pool distance swimmer whose first ‘excursion’ to open water was a great success.
The day also saw a special award ceremony: Europe’s two best open water swimmers of 2013 – elected by the LEN Family –, Thomas Lurz and Martina Grimaldi (ITA) received the prestigious LEN Award on site from LEN General Secretary David Sparkes.
Press release from LEN
Gallery images courtesy of deepbluemedia.eu
So with no real official task for today, I went back to Grünau to watch the open water races.
It was a nice day, with good competition especially in the men’s 10K, and decent weather.
Our president Hestoy was in charge of the women’s 5K, so I got to see that too.
Tomorrow there is no open water swimming, so maybe some synchro, or sightseeing.
During our Winter in July 2014 event Reba, an Asian elephant, received a double firehose shower from the Phoenix Fire Department! Elephants have very thick skin, and the high-pressure water streams from each hose is like a massage for Reba. All of the elephants at the Zoo receive daily showers from their keepers as part of their routine care. Our elephant staff is dedicated to providing the highest care for these amazing animals. Thank you Phoenix Fire Department for coming out to give Reba her annual Winter in July shower!
Courtesy of Phoenix Zoo on YouTube
Sharon van Rouwendaal (NED) and Daniel Fogg (GBR) earned the first titles on offer in open water swimming on the opening day of the 32nd European Championships in Berlin.
Sharon van Rouweendal of the Netherlands was crowned the first European champion of the 2014 edition in Berlin. It happened at the open water events at the magnificent rowing centre in Grunau where the women’s 10km race launched the 32nd European Championships
The enthusiastic spectators on the old stands witnessed another fantastic battle which offered the usual excitements. Italy’s Aurora Ponsele took the lead quite early and tried to set the pace. During the first 2.5km she built a 20sec lead ahead of the pack chasing her. She was still in front at half-way and even before the last lap but the gap diminished to a single second. The finish couldn’t have been any more thrilling: the competitors switched gears and they reached an amazing speed as if they hadn’t swum 9900 metres in the previous two hours or so. Finally, Rouwendaal stroke her way to the gold medal, reaching the touchpad 1.1sec ahead of Olympic champion Eva Risztov (HUN) who out-touched Ponsele by 0.4sec.
The men’s 5km time trial’s title went to Great Britain’s Daniel Fogg who even surprised himself by winning the event, ahead of the hosts’ two hopes, Rob Muffels and his majesty, the German Iron Man, Thomas Lurz.
This was part of a press release from LEN
Gallery images courtesy of deepbluemedia.eu
The open water swimmer Natalie Charlos (POL) is currently in good condition after she had to be taken to hospital after the women’s 10km race on Wednesday afternoon. She remains under observation in a local hospital for precaution according to the medical protocols.
The Organising Committee has assured LEN that all assistance and safety services are in place and in full functioning to provide the athletes the enforcement of both FINA and LEN regulations. For LEN, the athletes’ safety and health will remain the top priority.
The organizers at the Amsterdam Swim Cup are looking for swimmers to sign up for the 11th edition of the meet, which will take place Dec. 12-14. Â The three-day competition can be used to gain a cut time for the 2015 World Championships as well as the 2015 European Games.
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